Yokohama, 6th January.
Yesterday (January 5th) appearances were much more warlike than they have been for some time. Numerous significant features were recorded in the vernacular Press. It was reported, for instances, thnt instend of the usual mounted engineers, cavalry detachments were being train the special business of railway wrecking. References were made to stacks of arms and ammunition on the Moji wharves. Arsenals and ironworks were working over. time, even the New Year holiday (s0 generally observed in Javan) being dis. pensed with. Your correspondent hourd of an order for transport waggons; but just as the features of interest were increasing i borand significance, there came the expected urder of the Censor, on behalf of the Foreign Minister. the War Minister, and the Minister for the Navy, to suspend publication of a certain class of sews. strictly local rumours, symptomatic of the hope that springs eternal in the busine-breast, are to-day being circulated as to chances even yet of peaceful settlement. War itself could scarcely cripple business more than the present uncertainty. is doing, Several firms report practical cessation of orders or order-filling. A visit to the capital thix week was like. wise very impressing. The trains "u (the streets were full of uniformed men, some unfamiliar regimental colours from. far provinces being noticeable. Perhaps it is not impossible to attach a certain signifi. cance to a very evident rush upon the photographic establishments, which your correspondent was assured was quite abnormal. C.nversations with Japanese of varying stations nothing remarkable. The situation certainly saddened the customary New Year festivities, which were not on the shole-sale scale usual to this childis-hearted people. Indifference, in some cases due to stupid y, m others due to a lively faith in and reliance on those in authority, was.appsrent. Higher the educational seule, an intense anxiety for the Russian reply was being evinced, via tendency to distrust the outcome war was especially observable, self-confidence Leing usually [the Japanese. The soldiers and suiers themselves are happy of mien, but this may be due to the fact that they are enjoying a sort of hero-worship just wow. The more peaceful and hopeful papers here have now begun to admit that war looks almost inevitable, but curiously Jenough, after all these undoubtedly warlike matters have been catalogued, the present writer feels less certain than he did a few days ago. There seems to-day possibility at least of its not being quite so imminent as we have all been expecting. The feverish preparations of the foreign correspondents, urged on by frantic appeals cannot be accounted at all significant. They are due to the wrong construction which has been placed on the lack of news. Home editors seem to think that no news is bad news, that is, of bad omen,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.